Outside of Melancholy
by MakaS0ul
Summary: Corrin has been feeling down lately, prompting Azura to help her figure out her feelings for Charlotte. Valentine's Day stuff


**Happy Valentine's Day everybody! Happy average February 14** **th** **to those who don't give a shit! I hope everyone had a lovely (ha) day, regardless of what your plans were. This is something that I started when I was feeling a bit down that ended up turning into my Valentine's Day story. I hope everyone enjoys this bit of f!Corrin and Charlotte!**

* * *

Corrin felt melancholic. She couldn't pinpoint when she started feeling this way, but it had persisted for a while, long enough that she was forced to pay attention to it. While the war between Hoshido and Nohr weighed heavily on her mind, she knew the melancholy did not stem from it. It was something else entirely.

Day after day, she walked about the Astral Plane, feeling listless internally, but keeping up a cheerful façade externally. Fortunately, most people didn't seem to notice this, greeting her with just as much cheer as they thought she showed.

Unfortunately, there were a select few who _had_ caught on to her. Camilla, far more in tune with anything to do with Corrin than anyone else in the army, was clearly suspicious of her younger sister's behavior, but seemed to have elected to wait and see how Corrin progressed.

The other that seemed to have caught on was Azura, Corrin's closest ally and confidante. She too had left the draconic princess be for a while, until today, when she decided she had seen enough.

After Corrin had left the baths one evening to return to her treehouse, Azura approached Corrin's quarters, knocking on the wooden door firmly.

She heard a bit of rustling inside before the door swung open, revealing a confused Corrin.

"Azura? What are you doing here?" she inquired, a brow quirking in question. "It's awfully late to be dropping by for a visit. Is something wrong?"

"You could say that. May I come in?" The songstress's voice was soft, but there was a hint of determination behind it.

Corrin hesitated for a brief second before standing aside and allowing Azura to stride past her. She gestured to a chair at her little table that was piled with all kinds of books before shutting the door and taking a seat across from her friend.

"What did you want to talk about?"

"I've noticed that something is off about you, Corrin. Is something troubling you?" Azura would not beat around the bush this evening; not when her dearest friend was clearly upset.

The draconic princess faltered, seemingly caught off-guard by the songstress's question. "What makes you say that? I'm totally fine," she said, putting extra pep in her voice, though it sounded very forced, even to her own ears.

Azura gave Corrin a withering look, raising an eyebrow in disbelief. "Corrin, you know as well as I do that neither of us are very good at hiding things from each other." She took the draconic princess's hands in hers and squeezed them gently. "So please… tell me what is troubling you."

This time, Corrin simply sighed, hanging her head. "I've been feeling… down lately. I don't know when it started, but I just feel listless all the time. It feels like something is missing."

"Missing? What do you mean by that?" Azura had leaned forward, her golden eyes wide with a mixture of interest and concern.

Corrin gave a vague gesture. "I don't know. It feels like… like _somebody_ is missing. Like I'm… incomplete I guess."

The songstress hummed, tapping a finger to her chin. She knew _exactly_ what Corrin's problem was, but if she didn't handle this correctly, she'd probably just make her friend nervous and push her further away from the solution.

"Corrin? Is there anybody around camp that you've taken an interest in?" she ventured.

The draconic princess gave a quizzical look. "What do you mean?"

"Is there someone that you've noticed more often around camp? Someone you find your eyes naturally drawn to?"

Corrin paused for a moment, her crimson eyes trained towards the ceiling in thought. "Well…" she started, drawing out the word. "I _have_ noticed that new fighter, Charlotte, walking around camp lately. She's been a powerful asset to the army."

Azura smiled. At least Corrin wasn't completely dense; she just needed a bit more of a push. "What have you noticed about her?"

The draconic princess hummed. "I guess that she's really strong and pretty? Her hair is really nice and I like the bow tied in the back. She's also really nice to all the soldiers and her voice is rather lovely too. I'd like to get closer to her if I get the chance."

"Is that so?" Azura giggled. "She's been off on a mission these past few days. Do you feel sad when she's not around?"

Corrin crossed her arms and furrowed her brow in thought. "You know… now that you mention it, I do feel kind of sad. I'm worried if she's alright or not."

All the evidence for Azura's theory being correct had been laid out; now it was time to put the pieces together. "Corrin? Do you suppose you might fancy Charlotte?"

The draconic princess's face flushed instantly and her mouth flew open. "W-w-w-what m-makes you say that?"

"That," Azura said pointing at Corrin's blushing face, "and all the things you mentioned noticing about her. Missing her when she's gone was also a hint."

"T-that doesn't mean I l-like her…" Corrin trailed off.

"You're stuttering, Corrin. If you were Sakura, I would let it go, but this is you we're talking about," Azura deadpanned.

She laid a gentle hand on her friend's shoulders, gently squeezing until ruby-red eyes met her own. "There's nothing wrong with fancying Charlotte. Plenty of people in this army find lovers and spouses around camp. Why don't you try telling her how you feel?"

Corrin fidgeted under the intense yet understanding gaze of the songstress, feeling both her cheeks and the tips of her pointed ears redden. "W-what if she says no? What if I… c-creep her out? That's the last thing I want!"

"Corrin, calm down. She could say no –and that happens sometimes—but she could say yes. You will never know until you try." Azura looked deeply into her friend's eyes, ensuring that she was paying attention to her next words.

"She won't be creeped out if you tell her your honest feelings. Have faith that the girl you like will honor your honesty with her own."

The draconic princess squirmed, looking anywhere but into Azura's eyes. "…You've heard the rumors about her, haven't you?" she mumbled.

"Rumors? What rumors?" Azura wondered with a gentle tilt of her head. She hadn't heard much talk of Charlotte beyond the usual praises for her beauty and thoughtfulness.

"There have been whisperings around camp that she's not only incredibly strong, but she kinda has a temper. Some have been saying that her niceness is all an act…" Corrin trailed off.

The songstress regarded the draconic princess carefully, searching her expression. "And do you believe these rumors?"

"Er… yes." Before Azura could reply, Corrin waved her hands frantically, as if trying to physically clear away the misunderstanding. "Ah! But that's only because I've seen it for myself! She… punched a tree so hard it… fell over…"

Azura blinked. That was certainly an interesting revelation. She'd thought that Effie was the only one capable of such an absurd feat of strength. Still, she had to wonder whether or not these rumors would deter Corrin from pursuing the girl she was clearly interested in.

"Well, if that's the case, are you going to give up on her?" she queried, her voice soft. She hoped she sounded impartial; this was Corrin's decision and she had no business swaying her decision either way.

"No way," the draconic princess all but shouted, slapping a hand over her mouth to stop herself from causing any more of a ruckus in the late evening.

Azura giggled. "That's wonderful to hear." Her eyes lit up briefly, a sign Corrin knew meant her friend had thought up some kind of an idea. "Tomorrow is Valentine's Day, so why don't you give her a gift and tell her how you feel?"

Corrin spluttered, thankful she hadn't been drinking anything. "A g-gift?! I don't have anything for her! And how am I supposed to confess to her on the day that everyone else is probably gonna do the same thing?!"

The songstress let out a sigh before pulling an unassuming box from a fold in her dress. "Here," she said, placing the box into the trembling hand of her friend. "Find a ribbon and tie it around the box."

"W-what are—"

"They're chocolates. Charlotte has patrol tomorrow morning, right? Give them to her then and confess your feelings."

"B-but I-I—"

A particularly withering look from Azura stopped Corrin's protests in their tracks. She gulped audibly before nodding. "Alright. I'll tell her tomorrow morning."

The songstress giggled, patting her friend's slouched shoulders affectionately. "Do your best."

With that, Azura left, her aqua hair trailing behind her and out of the treehouse. All that remained was a frantic Corrin, who dug through her things in search of a ribbon.

Tomorrow would be exciting indeed.

* * *

Corrin didn't sleep a wink last night. All night she stared at the ceiling, her mind running through all the possible scenarios and outcomes at a lightning pace. It was exhausting, and she worried that she might fall asleep mid-confession.

With a heavy sigh, she got out of bed, donning her armor mechanically. From the top of the table, the box of chocolates –now wrapped with a lovely blue ribbon- Azura had given her seemed to mock her, sitting there smugly reminding her that she was set to make a complete and total fool of herself in a few moments.

Corrin glared at it, ridiculous as it was. "This is going to be the death of me, and it will be entirely yours and Azura's fault," she muttered. The box offered no response, of course.

When she had wasted as much time as she possibly could, she scooped up the gift and trudged out of the treehouse. It was now or never, she supposed.

When Corrin approached the prison where all the patrols began, she spotted Charlotte, hefting a massive steel axe over her shoulder with seemingly no effort. The only indication that the weapon weighed anything at all was the occasional ripple of Charlotte's muscles.

Corrin's mouth felt incredibly dry all of a sudden. And had it always been this hot in the Astral Plane? She tugged at her collar nervously.

The sun was rising slowly, indicating that she had but moments before her love interest would be off on her rounds. If she didn't do it now, she'd have to wait until evening, when many others would have already had the chance to tell the blonde fighter their feelings.

With that thought, Corrin rushed forward, nearly tripping in her haste. Miraculously, she managed to stand before Charlotte without embarrassing herself.

"Oh! Good morning, Lady Corrin," Charlotte greeted cheerily, her smile making Corrin's heart do backflips.

"Er… y-yeah… haha… Good m-morning…" Corrin stumbled out. Internally, she was cringing at her less-than-stellar greeting. She'd just have to press forward as best she could.

When her eyes blinked back into focus, Charlotte's own sky-blue orbs were peering worriedly back at her, far closer than Corrin had remembered her being when they began their rather pitiful conversation.

The draconic princess jumped back about 5 feet, letting out a yelp. "C-Charlotte?!"

"I was worried if you were alright, milady. You seem awfully nervous this morning," the blonde fighter said, a finger tapping against her cheek in thought.

"N-nervous?! Me?! No way!" Smooth, Corrin. She definitely bought that.

Corrin took a deep breath, centering herself before pulling the little box of chocolates from a pocket in her cape and holding it out in front of herself. She heard Charlotte gasp, but pushed out her words before the other girl could fully respond.

"Charlotte, you're an incredible person who is beautiful both inside and out. I know you're afraid that people will reject you for your true strength and character, but I love those parts of you! S-so, w-would you do me the honor of being my lover?"

She'd nearly nailed it, but she hoped that despite the stutter, her message would come across loud and clear. She hesitantly opened her eyes, surprised to find the blonde fighter blushing brightly and looking completely caught off guard.

"You love me even though you know what I'm really like? Are you crazy?" the fighter burst out, a hand coming up to try and hide her flushed face.

Corrin laughed sheepishly. "Maybe so. But if loving you for who you are makes me crazy, then I suppose I'm completely insane. Please believe me when I say that I love all of you, Charlotte."

After a moment of silence, Charlotte lowered her hand slowly. "You… really love me? Even though I'm freakishly strong and kind of rude?"

The draconic princess giggled, extending the box of chocolates once more. "Yes! I love all of you, and I hope that one day, you can come to love all of me. What do you say?"

With little warning, Charlotte let out a triumphant roar that likely woke the whole camp. Before Corrin could respond, Charlotte dashed forward, wrapping the draconic princess up in a bone-crushing hug. "Yes! I absolutely accept! I love you too, Lady Corrin!"

Corrin wheezed out a laugh. "It's just 'Corrin' now… dear."

The pet name caused both of them to flush, but neither tried to distance themselves from the embrace.

"I love you, Charlotte," Corrin whispered, resting her forehead against Charlotte's.

"I love you too, Corrin," she whispered back, pressing a chaste kiss to the smaller girl's lips.

As they went through Charlotte's rounds, their hands linked, Corrin smiled until her cheeks hurt, but it was a pain she was more than happy to bear.

She'd have to thank a certain songstress for pushing her outside of her melancholy, above the clouds, and into the sun. Her future was warm, indeed.

 _Someday in the melancholic world,_

 _Flowers will bloom as far as you can see._

 _I can't stop my heart from beating._

 _Take me somewhere above the clouds._

 **Take me outside my melancholy**

 **And into the sun**

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 **The song lyrics at the end, along with the title, were taken from the song "Outside of Melancholy" by fhana, as translated by beast-senior810. The last two lines in bold were my own additions. It's a lovely song that I recommend giving a listen to. I ended up writing this because Charlotte needs more love. Some think she's just a gold digger, but she's so much more than that. I didn't really focus on that aspect (that's something for another time), but I wanted to make sure that Corrin went in knowing exactly what Charlotte was really like. Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys this! Until next time~!**


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